Sunday, March 8, 2009
Traffic
now the long curve of traffic begins. we have no idea how long it will take for this curve to pick up. but it's a game of patience. as long as we're in the game, we can only improve.
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
We are Web 2.0 now
website update! we just upgraded, we are now web 2.0!
What does web 2.0 mean?
Web 2.0 is comprised of the "newer" generation of internet services. What that means is websites which utilize more resources are considered web 2.0 Things like user generated content, and ajax are considered web 2.0. AND NO SHARP EDGES! That means Simple Spot is now upgraded to Web 2.0!
What does web 2.0 mean?
Web 2.0 is comprised of the "newer" generation of internet services. What that means is websites which utilize more resources are considered web 2.0 Things like user generated content, and ajax are considered web 2.0. AND NO SHARP EDGES! That means Simple Spot is now upgraded to Web 2.0!
Where the idea came from
The current version of Simple Spot is a completely refined version of what my original idea was. I find the concept of events occurring in full circle amazing. Just because that's exactly how Simple Spot came into existence. Truly a good story, read on.
So if you know me, then you'll know my true passion and love in life is music. I didn't quite realize how much music means to me until i was 18, so quite late to discover that i need to learn more about music. But quite early to recognize my passion in life.
I always had a thing for music, but when i was a few years younger (about 15 or 16) i wasn't so serious about it. I just felt it was something i was interested in, however that interest was enough motivation for me to purchase my own set of Technics 1200 turntables. They were fresh, clean black finish, and pleasing to the eyes. I definitely was proud of owning my own set at 16.
By grade 12 i was having some money problems. So i ended up selling my beloved turntables in order to make some money. However the way i sold them was really quite unique. Because i thought it would be kinda cool, i made a video on youtube dedicated to selling my turntables. now i didn't expect to sell it. my mind was thinking, if someone is looking to buy a pair of turntables, they wouldn't go on youtube to find them. but man i was wrong. about a month or so after i made the video, i got contacted by someone. i was hesitant at first because it was a complete stranger that wanted to meet with me. however he was a bit more reassuring as he offered to give me his phone number, so i can contact him. this made me feel a bit better cause i wouldn't have to reveal my personal information right away. after discussing everything on the phone, he came by my place, checked them out, and bought them the same day. when he bought them he told me that there was one thing about my video that sealed the deal for him. he said something like "you know what sold me in your video? the song you had playing in the background, i love that track."
a few months passed by and then as quick as lightening an idea popped into my head. i somehow ended up telling myself that i just sold my turntables through online video. i practically made a tv commercial for free. and not only was it free, but it had the potential to receive more views than a tv commercial. not only that, the video would attract people interested in buying what i have for sale. and the video would be used to add personality, information, and more depth to what i had for sale.
the grand idea was to allow the public to use videos in order to promote their goods/services for sale on a classifieds site. the original business concept was to push for an online video classifieds site for vancouver and the pitch would be that you can create your own commercial for free! i thought it'd be great because there's so much more opportunities to sell an item through a video, than a picture or plain text. i was bouncing around names and the one i held on to was nulubox.
at the time this grand idea came to me at about 18 years old. i was still in high school, graduating year, and working a p/t job as a naviskater for metropolis at metrotown. in retrospect, i think i just wasn't ready to take on this great opportunity. i mean...i didn't know anything about websites, web design, or internet marketing so it was easy to get discouraged. and discouraged is exactly what i was. i left the idea and moved on.
two years later something happened. i was doing some training for my self-employment work, and again that lightening struck me. on my way home from the training i told myself, damn i need to do nulubox. it was very sudden. but i think i was just ready to pursue it.
i decided to get busy right away. so after looking into it i decided i wanted to change the name. so i just googled "simple spot" for the hell of it. and realized that nothing interesting came up. that's when i decided, now is the time.
the simple spot you see today is now an online classifieds site exclusively made for vancouver. it still has the element of video, however it's not pushed the way i had intended back in the nulubox days.
so about the full circle thing...my love for music lead me to purchase turntables. i sold the turntables out of necessity. by selling the turntables i was revealed to a lucrative business opportunity. i am now pursuing this business, and we'll see how it turns out. afterall my end dream is to become immersed in the life of music, as a producer/songwriter. so i definitely see a full circle where this one's going.
So if you know me, then you'll know my true passion and love in life is music. I didn't quite realize how much music means to me until i was 18, so quite late to discover that i need to learn more about music. But quite early to recognize my passion in life.
I always had a thing for music, but when i was a few years younger (about 15 or 16) i wasn't so serious about it. I just felt it was something i was interested in, however that interest was enough motivation for me to purchase my own set of Technics 1200 turntables. They were fresh, clean black finish, and pleasing to the eyes. I definitely was proud of owning my own set at 16.
By grade 12 i was having some money problems. So i ended up selling my beloved turntables in order to make some money. However the way i sold them was really quite unique. Because i thought it would be kinda cool, i made a video on youtube dedicated to selling my turntables. now i didn't expect to sell it. my mind was thinking, if someone is looking to buy a pair of turntables, they wouldn't go on youtube to find them. but man i was wrong. about a month or so after i made the video, i got contacted by someone. i was hesitant at first because it was a complete stranger that wanted to meet with me. however he was a bit more reassuring as he offered to give me his phone number, so i can contact him. this made me feel a bit better cause i wouldn't have to reveal my personal information right away. after discussing everything on the phone, he came by my place, checked them out, and bought them the same day. when he bought them he told me that there was one thing about my video that sealed the deal for him. he said something like "you know what sold me in your video? the song you had playing in the background, i love that track."
a few months passed by and then as quick as lightening an idea popped into my head. i somehow ended up telling myself that i just sold my turntables through online video. i practically made a tv commercial for free. and not only was it free, but it had the potential to receive more views than a tv commercial. not only that, the video would attract people interested in buying what i have for sale. and the video would be used to add personality, information, and more depth to what i had for sale.
the grand idea was to allow the public to use videos in order to promote their goods/services for sale on a classifieds site. the original business concept was to push for an online video classifieds site for vancouver and the pitch would be that you can create your own commercial for free! i thought it'd be great because there's so much more opportunities to sell an item through a video, than a picture or plain text. i was bouncing around names and the one i held on to was nulubox.
at the time this grand idea came to me at about 18 years old. i was still in high school, graduating year, and working a p/t job as a naviskater for metropolis at metrotown. in retrospect, i think i just wasn't ready to take on this great opportunity. i mean...i didn't know anything about websites, web design, or internet marketing so it was easy to get discouraged. and discouraged is exactly what i was. i left the idea and moved on.
two years later something happened. i was doing some training for my self-employment work, and again that lightening struck me. on my way home from the training i told myself, damn i need to do nulubox. it was very sudden. but i think i was just ready to pursue it.
i decided to get busy right away. so after looking into it i decided i wanted to change the name. so i just googled "simple spot" for the hell of it. and realized that nothing interesting came up. that's when i decided, now is the time.
the simple spot you see today is now an online classifieds site exclusively made for vancouver. it still has the element of video, however it's not pushed the way i had intended back in the nulubox days.
so about the full circle thing...my love for music lead me to purchase turntables. i sold the turntables out of necessity. by selling the turntables i was revealed to a lucrative business opportunity. i am now pursuing this business, and we'll see how it turns out. afterall my end dream is to become immersed in the life of music, as a producer/songwriter. so i definitely see a full circle where this one's going.
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
Time to learn some code
After watching Theo, our web developer go at it with Simple Spot. I've found myself so intrigued by this ...thing called code.
Before Simple Spot existed, i had no clue how much work goes into a website. They are so complicated. Being a web developer is like being an engineer in my eyes. To make some really complicated stuff up, you gotta be really good at what you do.
I can confidently say i appreciate the effort that Theo puts in to Simple Spot. When we get going on updates and new features, i get to see all the seperate files of html and css, it's just nuts. There's so much going on, i don't even know the proper terminology.
So, in conclusion to my new found appreciation for web development, and the knowledge required for it, I have decided to begin a new journey. And this journey is...
Ron, the web developer.
That's why i'm writing this blog so early. I just been reading and practicing beginner html. haha. it's great. been doing this all night. now i see why web developers are known for their fluctuating sleeping patterns, i'll be next pretty soon. but can't quite call myself a developer yet.
Before Simple Spot existed, i had no clue how much work goes into a website. They are so complicated. Being a web developer is like being an engineer in my eyes. To make some really complicated stuff up, you gotta be really good at what you do.
I can confidently say i appreciate the effort that Theo puts in to Simple Spot. When we get going on updates and new features, i get to see all the seperate files of html and css, it's just nuts. There's so much going on, i don't even know the proper terminology.
So, in conclusion to my new found appreciation for web development, and the knowledge required for it, I have decided to begin a new journey. And this journey is...
Ron, the web developer.
That's why i'm writing this blog so early. I just been reading and practicing beginner html. haha. it's great. been doing this all night. now i see why web developers are known for their fluctuating sleeping patterns, i'll be next pretty soon. but can't quite call myself a developer yet.
Monday, February 23, 2009
Proud to announce
One of our most anticipated features for the online classifieds industry...
Private messaging! Now our users can private message one another in regards to the items for sale, or anything really! It works like an e-mail inbox but within the Simple Spot network of accounts! Great! Just another reason for people to check out our services.
Private messaging! Now our users can private message one another in regards to the items for sale, or anything really! It works like an e-mail inbox but within the Simple Spot network of accounts! Great! Just another reason for people to check out our services.
The Simple Spot team
i guess it's kind of late to introduce the team, but i might as well do it anyways.
Ronaldo Villanueva (Ron) - Chief of grammatics/coordinator
Kamal Shokar (Kamal) - Web designer/coordinator
Theo Hawse (Rockdiamond) - Web developer
Tara Seehra (XtraMagic) - Forum moderator
Ronaldo Villanueva (Ron) - Chief of grammatics/coordinator
Kamal Shokar (Kamal) - Web designer/coordinator
Theo Hawse (Rockdiamond) - Web developer
Tara Seehra (XtraMagic) - Forum moderator
Todays update =]
So over the weekend we've made some updates to the site. Here's a list of the changes:
-Added My Account to Quick Userlinks, Changed "Your Profile" to "My Profile"
-Added "Other" [Category Name] to each category at post to page
Created for any items which may not have its own category yet
-Updated htaccess so anyone accessing the site at www.simplespot.ca will now be redirected to simplespot.ca without the www. this will help with search engine crawling and makes for cleaner looking search results
As you can see, we're always updating the site to improve it. So in due time we will have the best online classifieds service provided exclusively for Vancouver. =] And again we have Theo to thank for the on-going development.
-Added My Account to Quick Userlinks, Changed "Your Profile" to "My Profile"
-Added "Other" [Category Name] to each category at post to page
Created for any items which may not have its own category yet
-Updated htaccess so anyone accessing the site at www.simplespot.ca will now be redirected to simplespot.ca without the www. this will help with search engine crawling and makes for cleaner looking search results
As you can see, we're always updating the site to improve it. So in due time we will have the best online classifieds service provided exclusively for Vancouver. =] And again we have Theo to thank for the on-going development.
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Today's updates!
So the website has been running well. We have a new forum section available for Vancouverites awaiting Aion's release =] Check it out here: http://www.simplespot.ca/forums/local-discussion/vancouver-aion
So far the website has been running smooth, if you'd like to contribute to our website, then go ahead and feel free to! Make an account, discuss on forums, make an advertisement on our classifieds section, or browse! It's all free so you can do whatever you like!
Hope to see you as part of our community soon! Thanks =]
So far the website has been running smooth, if you'd like to contribute to our website, then go ahead and feel free to! Make an account, discuss on forums, make an advertisement on our classifieds section, or browse! It's all free so you can do whatever you like!
Hope to see you as part of our community soon! Thanks =]
Friday, February 20, 2009
K so it's time to provide this blog with some updates...hm where to start...
guess i start with a congratulations to Theo Hawse, and the Simple Spot team!!
K so here's what's going on with the website. We've just recently transferred the test site
over the to the official domain www.simplespot.ca for anyone interested. and then we ran rigorous testing for days to find any other errors and bugs. now we're in the early stages of our website and offering a free online classified service for all of Vancouver.
We have a dedicated team specifically looking after the needs and safety of the users. We're only providing our service to the Vancouver community, so hopefully our dedicated team is something everyone can appreciate. We're aiming to provide proper regulation of user content, as well as increase safety and efficiency through our service. we allow user accounts which provide many benefits. things such as "my spot" allow users to manage their content much more easily. "user profiles" allow you to put a face behind your account. we want people to be able to feel comfortable using online classifieds, especially ours. a single account registration provides you with all the account benefits of our classified service, as well as the ability to post on forums.
other benefits:
-comment box provided for each user generated ad
-link a video to your ad
-allowed to post up to 12 images
-communicate without having to reveal personal information (use accounts to communicate)
-service focused on one demographic (increased quality of spam protection)
we've worked pretty hard to get to this stage of the service. however we're still udpating and making sure that our site can become Vancouver very best classified service. thanks for reading!
guess i start with a congratulations to Theo Hawse, and the Simple Spot team!!
K so here's what's going on with the website. We've just recently transferred the test site
over the to the official domain www.simplespot.ca for anyone interested. and then we ran rigorous testing for days to find any other errors and bugs. now we're in the early stages of our website and offering a free online classified service for all of Vancouver.
We have a dedicated team specifically looking after the needs and safety of the users. We're only providing our service to the Vancouver community, so hopefully our dedicated team is something everyone can appreciate. We're aiming to provide proper regulation of user content, as well as increase safety and efficiency through our service. we allow user accounts which provide many benefits. things such as "my spot" allow users to manage their content much more easily. "user profiles" allow you to put a face behind your account. we want people to be able to feel comfortable using online classifieds, especially ours. a single account registration provides you with all the account benefits of our classified service, as well as the ability to post on forums.
other benefits:
-comment box provided for each user generated ad
-link a video to your ad
-allowed to post up to 12 images
-communicate without having to reveal personal information (use accounts to communicate)
-service focused on one demographic (increased quality of spam protection)
we've worked pretty hard to get to this stage of the service. however we're still udpating and making sure that our site can become Vancouver very best classified service. thanks for reading!
At last...
Haven't updated this blog lately, my fault entirely. However I am 110% proud to announce that the brand new Vancouver classifieds www.simplespot.ca is fully operational and online!! check it out!! or simply visit our forum at www.simplespot.ca/forum the site is great.
Special thanks to the Simple spot team and Theo Hawse, our web developer for this project. We couldn't have gotten this far if it wasn't for everyone, especially Theo. So please do visit the site, and enjoy, thanks!! Will update this blog more often now, =] posting things like updates and such!!
Hope you enjoy it just as much as we do.
Special thanks to the Simple spot team and Theo Hawse, our web developer for this project. We couldn't have gotten this far if it wasn't for everyone, especially Theo. So please do visit the site, and enjoy, thanks!! Will update this blog more often now, =] posting things like updates and such!!
Hope you enjoy it just as much as we do.
Friday, January 16, 2009
Official Public Launch again!
OK! Official launch date is January 31st 2009! Oh so very exciting. There will also be a launch party on Feb 7th to celebrate the first week of public release. More details to come.
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Official Public launch!
Official public launch aka Phase 1 is expected to be late January 2009. Hope you're ready for this.
See you there!
See you there!
Friday, January 2, 2009
2009 for Simple Spot
Happy new year everyone! 2008 was short lived but filled with great times.
2009 is an exciting year for Simple Spot, making it an exciting year for Vancouver.
This is the year that we will be launching the site. It's going to be such a large step foward in the industry. We believe our approach for providing the classified services and advertising services will be adapted by all of our competition. However Vancouver is our only concern, we wish to provide our services in order to become Vancouver's website of choice.
Official launch date is expected to be late January 2009. Simple Spot and myself, Ron, will see you then. Bye now, have a great 2009.
2009 is an exciting year for Simple Spot, making it an exciting year for Vancouver.
This is the year that we will be launching the site. It's going to be such a large step foward in the industry. We believe our approach for providing the classified services and advertising services will be adapted by all of our competition. However Vancouver is our only concern, we wish to provide our services in order to become Vancouver's website of choice.
Official launch date is expected to be late January 2009. Simple Spot and myself, Ron, will see you then. Bye now, have a great 2009.
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